1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a waveform observing apparatus and the system thereof.
2. Description of the Background Art
There has been used a waveform observing apparatus for observing a temperature and pressure of equipment on a factory production line. The measured data on temperatures and pressure historically used to be written in waveform on rolled paper (chart), but with the development of electronic equipment, a waveform observing apparatus that displays a waveform by use of a display in place of paper is currently in wide use.
The waveform observing apparatus is capable of displaying in a display section a constantly varying measured value, namely a time-series waveform, while storing measured data captured from a thermocouple or the like into a memory mounted to the waveform observing apparatus. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H7-114349 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-82133 each disclose a waveform observing apparatus having a display with a touch panel. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H7-114349 proposes that, by a user touching a function key displayed in a display section, a function designated by the function key displayed in the display section is executed. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-82133 displays that, while a displayed waveform is observed, an operation of inputting a comment or a marking by pen-input is performed using a pen-input touch screen.
Incidentally, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-146628 discloses a conventional technique in the case of writing a copy of measured data stored in a memory mounted in a waveform observing apparatus (body memory) into a removable storage medium (e.g. FD) for the purpose of long-term storage of measured data stored in the body memory. Specifically, the following technique has been disclosed as a conventional example. Namely, assuming that a storage capacity of the body memory is three hours, when measured data is stored into the body memory in every one hour, in the first one hour, measured data with a capacity for one hour is written into the FD. In the subsequent writing, measured data with a capacity for the subsequent one hour is written in addition to the data with a capacity of the last one hour. In the further subsequent writing, data with a capacity for three hours including the data with a capacity for the last two hours is written. As opposed to this, the invention proposed by Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-146628 proposes to make a mode selectable between a first mode of writing into the FD measured data, namely measured data with a capacity for three hours, stored in the body memory as conventionally done and a second mode of writing in the FD measured data up to the present excluding measured data having been written into the FD in the past out of measured data inside body memory, namely difference data.
Namely, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-146628 proposes a technique for difference copy in which difference data as a second mode is written into an FD in regard to measured data stored in the body memory with intent to improve data writing efficiency at the time of storing measured data stored in the body memory of the waveform observing apparatus into the other storage medium for long periods. In the waveform observing apparatus currently commercially available, measured data stored in a body memory is copied into an FD or a USB memory by a method shown in FIG. 12 based upon the second mode described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No 2000-146628, namely, the technique for difference copy.
With reference to FIG. 12, the waveform observing device collects measured data in accordance with a predetermined sampling cycle, and creates one measured data file in each predetermined filing creation cycle, to house measured data during filing creation cycle into the measured data file. This is specifically described as follows. When sampling of a fifth measured data is completed, a first measured data file 001 is created, and first to fifth measured data are stored into the first measured data file 001. Similarly, in a next filing creation cycle, when sampling of a tenth measured data is completed, a second measured data file 002 is created, and sixth to tenth measured data are stored into the second measured data file 002. Similarly, in a next filing creation cycle, when sampling of a fifteenth measured data is completed, a third measured data file 003 is created, and eleventh to fifteenth measured data are stored into the third measured data file 003. Further, in a next filing creation cycle, when sampling of a twentieth measured data is completed, a fourth measured data file 004 is created, and sixteenth to tenth measured data are stored into the fourth measured data file 004.